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Investment Overview

France is the world’s most popular holiday destination and investment property in France is an established favourite of overseas property buyers. It tends to attract buyers who intend to hold the property for a number of years either as an investment or for relocation. Although the French property market does not have the dynamism of some others in Europe, the stability of its market and the sustained level of demand for property – to buy or to rent – ensure that investment property in France retains immense popularity with investors.

Number one holiday destination

France is the most popular foreign holiday destination in the world and the second most popular destination for UK tourists to visit, after Spain, so investment property in France encompasses a wealth of opportunities for buy–to–let investors. The traditional French holidays are still just as popular with visitors and, as more regional airports in France are being served by international airlines, tourists are beginning to visit previously unknown parts of the country and property investors are following.

Stable property market

Although the property market in France has never seen the same kind of dramatic price rises as some other foreign markets, capital appreciation over the years has been steady and impressive, and has been relatively unaffected by competition from emerging markets elsewhere. Most buyers intend to retain their property for a number of years – whether as an investment or to live in – and this lends the market strength through stability. This is not to say that buying property in France is not profitable; prices in some parts of France have risen by around 15–17% per year for the last couple of years.

Investment alternatives

The French property market is often considered to be predominantly a resale market, and many buyers look for older, traditional properties with good rental potential. A popular alternative to the resale market is to buy into a leaseback scheme – a government–backed scheme which provides property investors with guaranteed rental on their property for a large proportion of the year, as well as tax breaks in return for using the property for holiday rental. The government introduced the leaseback scheme to address the shortage of tourist accommodation in some key resorts of France, by offering incentives for property developers to build in these as well as incentives to buyers.

Related items

Documents and Reports

	France property investment report (447Kb)
	France property buying guide (1Mb)
	France country guide (991Kb)
Documents and Reports

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